1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to shock-absorbers for sports equipment and, more particularly, to absorbers inflatable by a pump to an adjustable pressure.
2. Description of Related Art
Sports shoes are generally provided with tongues which are provided with a thin layer of sponge. The shock-absorbing function of the thin sponge layer is not ideal during use, because the user not only feels pressure against his foot, but also discomfort owing to the lace binding, the foot being full of blood vessels and sinews. When a foot stops during exercise, the shock forces against the shoe mainly fall on the tongue and the lace section in addition to the toe box. The thin sponge layer of the tongue cannot endure such shock forces against the foot.
It would be desirable to make a shoe tongue that could endure such shock forces, could be provided with different shock-absorbing capabilities to cope with both walking and exercising, and could be comfortable without pressing the foot.
There is a kind of hard skiing shoe provided with air-inflated shoe tongues, each made of two pieces stuck together and forming an empty pocket if the air should leak out owing to breakage or wear and tear. Once the tongues become flat, they can hardly be repaired. The entire skiing shoes have to be discarded. This is wasteful and uneconomical.